Welcome to the official blog for Expedition 13A. We'll be keeping you posted on all the happenings of life on expedition from 10th January to 11th April. Check back and please send us your comments, it's free and easy. ¡Pura vida!

Wednesday, 6 March 2013

X-Ray 2: Corcovado Trek

X-Ray 2 are currently on Day 11 of their trek, they have battled through forest and rain (although X-Ray 1 and 3 have definitely borne the brunt of the wet weather) climbing to stunning peaks and enjoying the hot thermal pools, which hopefully alleviated some of their trekking aches. They are currently on their way to Los Mogos on the pacific side of Costa Rica and are making excellent progress.

Today's blog was written by X-Ray 2's Comms Officer Wisha Walker

Venturers waiting nervously, sitting on the edge of their seats, looking forward to hearing their fate.... X-Ray 2! As usual the trek teams were called first at allocations, before we knew it our names were called and X-Ray 2 for the Corcovado trek were formed. Bring it on!

From the start it was clear that our group was vivacious, determined and ready for action. Although we felt rather relieved to have an 8 hour bus journey to our start point, a luxurious rest at El Progresso in a community centre. I'm certainly not alone when I say that I have never appreciated bed time as much as I have on Raleigh - everyday is a full-on non-stop action adventure.We have been progressing well and we are already feeling satisfied and are overwhelmed by the views we have seen and overwhelmed by the privilege we have been given and what we have achieved so far.

The days started with steep hills which eased off slightly and suddenly we were rambling through forest, thankfully the previous Alpha had tackled it with 6 hours of cutting through with a machete to create our path - thanks Alpha 2!

Lena, Chuck, Willie, Hidde, Kat and Anthony ready to trek

Then it begun to rain, a wet group began to cross rivers, scale hills and through great teamwork we helped each other. With no sign of the rain ending, we marched on with our heads held high and before we knew it we had arrived at the quiet, colourful and desolate village of Alturas, where we would later set up our tents, although an incredibly kind local offered us their community centre, so our tents came down - good practice though!

Freddie and Kat loving trek

Chuck and Anthony enjoying a well-deserved rest

Pittier Rangers Station, a tough trek achieved by 10.30am - must be a new record

It has been spectacular, despite some cold nights and 5.30am starts to our day, in order to beat the heat, we have seen incredible views, lively monkeys dancing along the tress, njoyed a leisurely and well deserved dip in the idyllic aguas thermals before enduring the never ending up hill climbs - although whenever we arrive some very redface and sweaty X-Ray 2 faces are always beaming.Ever in anticipation we are excited and looking forward to the challenged that lie ahead and are excited to find out what the Corcovado trek will reveal in front to us.

X-Ray 2: a team ready to face the rest of their trek and the challenges ahead

p.s sorry we have been a bit absent recently and thank you for your patience; we have been out and about collecting stories and pictures, completing the very important task of delivering food, blog messages, post and of course news from the outside world to all our of our teams. Updates and pictures of our teams to follow...

Mary McSporran X-Ray 2 So great to see some pictures and read about what you have been up to. Not surprised you have had rain it is so green and lush. Really looking forward to hearing about the wildlife you have seen. I sent a more 'newsy' message earlier today and birthday wishes for Friday of course. I'm sure you will be celebrating with the group. Look after those feet and enjoy the rest of the trek. What an achievement,keep smiling Love & miss you lots Mum & Dad ( still in Peru)xxxx

James Taylor X Ray 2 Corcovado TrekLovely to see pictures of your trek and read about your adventures,glad to see you are all enjoying yourselves in spite of the rain. Hope you are avoiding sunburn, bites and blisters, thinking of you oftenLove Grandma & Grandpa

Emma Holder 13A, X-ray 3Hey babe, the blog has been absent but I now realise you have had terrible conditions for your trek! Oh babe, poor you, adding to the anxiety and challenge. You will be putting your trainers on for a rainy day run before me now! Oh yeah! I hope you are coping, thinking of you everyday. my birthday was good, thankyou for my card, no rain for trip up The Shard! Betsy been poorly and miserable but getting better now. We miss you, half way through now, hang in there girl you are doing great. Love you to the moon and back, Mamen, xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

For Iona Clark Alpha 8: Hi Darling Onie, We have seen some photos of you. You look great: very happy and contented as per your message. Hope all is well. Send us another message when you can.We MISS you. Tons and Tons of love M&D xxx

Elpha perkins x ray 2. Just read the blog and seen pictures. Lovely to see you! Sounds such a challenge and rain too! I hope my blogs have got through to you as I think I messed up on the sending bit. I've got a blister in sympathy with you all from snow shoeing in alps with dad! Slightly different weather profile? All is well here, Leicester accommodation still under control so no worries! Will e mail and there should be letter waiting for you. We all think about you daily, and know it must be up and down but amazing experience. Xxxx mum and dad... Xxxxxx

Elpha perkins x ray 2... No worries, just seen one blog soi know you have got one from me, I've Sussed it out finally, sorry you did not get my earlier masterpieces of wit and motivational words to get you through the trek. 2 blogs in 1 day. Love you. Xxxxx mumxxx

Issie Rughani, X Ray 7Hi Issie!! Hope everything is ticking along okay. We are missing you lots! We keep checking this blog thing for updates from XRay 7 but none as yet. I spoke to Dadaji and Dad yesterday on Skype - both looked well! Mum is working lots and making practice cakes...! I am doing eyes at the moment - 'pretty cool' stuff as Robin would say! Anyhoooo thinking of you loads and can't wait to hear from you at the crossover time! lots and lots of love Guysie!XXXXX

Lover!!!!!!!!Ere one is looking a significantly different skin tone from last time I saw you-haha!!!!!Aww miss you lover!Can't wait to speak to you and catch up on your latest adventures!Sarah xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Elpha Perkins X-Ray 2 This is so exciting! Finally I've sussed out this blog, I had a tough time finding it. I miss you like crazy. I've got your 2 letters. I've sent 2 too. Even though I'm loving this old school letter thing I don't fully trust it so I hope you've got them. Also sent you some random emails if you can find internet. I just sorted the Leicester accommodation and your mum's done yours too. If you ever feel homesick don't bother, London will still be here when you return and I will be there to greet you with cheesy pasta and sweetcorn (some things never change) Thinking of you xxx Maddie

for Cat Hodgson x ray 2You are smiling, the hills haven't beaten you and sounds like you have made record time despite rain. You are all superstars. Its Wednesday and you are back to base camp on Friday. Cant believe its nearly all over. Its still trying to snow in this country. Hopefully you will bring some warm weather back with you next week.Sooooo looking forward to seeing you and hearing all about everything-sharing in your adventures.Lots of love Mummy

Elpha Perkins X Ray 2 Your wish is my command, I’m going to be your overbearing friend sending you blogs all the time. The pictures look amazing, I’m madly jealous! I started that new job this week so we went out last night in angel. I’m going to take you to the bar we went it was fun, bit of karaoke too haha. Not loving this hangover I’m rockin though. I bet your going to be fit as a fiddle when you get back. I hope your memory can hold all your tales because I intend to listen to them all. As for a bit of small talk- weather’s the usual. Disappointing. Love you xxx Maddie

Thank you for visiting our blog. Comments are monitored daily and we will ensure messages are promptly delivered to your loved ones. Please ensure you state the name of the person to whom your message is addressed. This is so we don't miss any out. Muchas gracias!

The 13A Expedition blog

Welcome to the Raleigh blog for Costa Rica and Nicaragua. You can view our posts, videos and photos (click on them to enlarge) and browse through our blog archive. Let us know what you think and you can also send messages to your loved ones and friends and we'll pass them on when we visit the project sites. So dive in and explore...

How to send your loved ones a message

It's easy. Scroll down to the bottom of the most recent entry and click the comments link. A box will then appear where you can write your comment - please don't forget to tell us who the message is for including the full name and project group of the recipient. You can select name/URL from the dropdown menu to tell us who it's from (you can leave the URL blank if you wish). Finally, click on 'Post Comment' and you're done.

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All comments that are pertinent to the post will be publshed and all personal messages will be delivered (even if they don't appear published). Messages mean a lot to all the volunteers; thank you for your continued support.

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Raleigh Lingo

Copy that?

Sometimes our Raleigh technical terms can be a tad confusing so we've put together a glossary for you blog followers. This will appear as a quick-reference section on the right-hand column so you can translate our Tico-terms into something a bit more palatable. And for those keen to brush up their Central American Spanish, we've included some handy translations. Here's a few to get you started...

Alpha, X-Ray and Zulu groups(Grupos Alfa, X-Ray y Zulu)The official name for project groups during the phases of CR&N 13A. Alpha will be out on project from 3rd to 23rd February, X-Ray from 24th February to 15th March and Zulu from 17th March to 5th April. Project groups are allocated during induction

BashaJungle ‘bed’: consists of a tarpaulin for shelter, a hammock and mosquito net. A basha is hung up between two trees and supported by rope, bamboo and canvas straps

BodegaA Spanish word meaning store or warehouse

BravoA term of endearment for our hard-working Land Rovers. The four vehicles are officially, and imaginatively named Bravo One, Two, Three and Four

C.A.T.I.E.The agricultural and development research institute on whose campus Fieldbase is situated. Find out more at http://www.catie.ac.cr/

Changeover (Cambio de Fase)Two day period where all staff and Venturers return from their project sites for some respite before they are all reallocated and sent off to do it all over again...

Chicas, ChicosSpanish term meaning girls (chicas) or guys (chicos) or both (chicos aswell). As in “Vamonos chicos!” or “Let’s go guys!”

Craic A way to gauge how people are feeling, usually measured from 0 to 90. If your ‘craic’ is high, you’re pretty happy. If you announce a low craic, people will probably fix you up with an energy bomb and a nice big hug

CR&N 13ACosta Rica and Nicaragua expeditions 13A

Day Leader (DL) (Líder del día)Every day on project, one of the Team is designated DL – they are in charge of the day, including organising the day’s briefing, keeping group morale up, dealing with any problems, sticking to schedule and de-briefing at the end of the day. The DL role rotates round the whole group so everyone takes a turn

Energizer (Actividad Levanta Muertos)An activity to gather the group together and raise energy levels. Can be used at the beginning of the day, or whenever a quick pick-me-up is required

Energy bombs (Explosión de azucar)A trekking treat – mix together oats, raisins, condensed milk and chocolate powder and roll into little balls of gooey goodness to power you through the day

Fieldbase (FB) (Campo Base)Refers to the Raleigh ‘office residence’ which is where the Fieldbase staff eat, sleep and work, whilst organising the expedition, manning the radios round the clock, supporting the projects, planning transport and logistics, keeping tabs on the finances and much, much more

Field Base Volunteer Managers (Equipo Logístico Voluntario del Campo Base)Volunteer support staff for the expedition. The team looks after the ‘behind the scenes’ of the expedition and ensures everything runs smoothly. This consists of three permanent staff members - the Country Director, Country Project Manager and Country Expedition Manager - plus a team of volunteer staff including the, Medic, Photographer, Administrator, Finance Officer, three Logistics (logs) team members and the Communications Officer

Longdrop (Letrina)The camp loo. Literally a deep hole in the ground, it is one of the first tasks to complete when setting up jungle camp for obvious reasons! Short drops are similar, normally used for overnight stops when a shallower trench will suffice

Longs (Pantalones)From 6pm onwards, we all don long trousers and sleeves to discourage the bugs that aren’t deterred by DEET

MaxisShort for Maxi Pali, the stock-everything shop about a kilometer from Fieldbase where you can buy all those things you forgot/ran out of/lost

NicasAn affectionate term referring to the native population of Nicaragua

NinjaA popular game/energizer used by venturers and Project managers alike. Everyone stands in a circle and tries to hit the team members either side of them on the hand via a single ninja movements. Sound effects welcome

POPSLegendary milkshake and ice-cream parlour chain found all over Costa Rica – perfect for a sweet splurge

Pork and beans (Frijoles con cerdo)Another staple foodstuff for trekkers: tinned beans with a slightly sausage twang, served cold for lunch. Usually accompanied by dry cracker dust, sprinkled liberally on to the top. If you’re in a hurry, this can be consumed without cutlery straight from the can

Project Managers (PMs) (Guías)Project staff for the expedition. Each of the groups has at least two PMs who work with the Venturers to develop skills, lead projects and challenge themselves

Radio check (Chequeo de Radio)As well as a daily SITREP, all Alpha projects are required to complete a second radio call-in each day to check in, receive messages and report any developments

Review (Revisión)A round-up that assesses how everyone feels, what went well and what needs work. This is sometimes an ‘activity’, sometimes a chat around the campfire, or sometimes just a bit of time to reflect. It’s an important part of everyone’s personal development so we make sure it happens every day

Roadtrip (Paseo Volando Rueda)The logistics team and some of the Field Base team drive the Bravos on a loop round to each of the accessible project sites once per phase. They deliver kit, supplies, site visitors, messages from the blog and of course the all important post

Ropa AmericanaPurveyors of the finest second hand American threads. Perfect for fancy dress/obtaining that long coveted college sports jersey

SITREP (Reporte de la Situación)Literally Situation Report. A special radio message sent from the satellite project sites back to fieldbase once a day. It follows a certain format and includes all sort of handy information like where they are, what they’ve been up to, what they need and what they’re planning to do next

TangA fruity powder that is used to make squash. Jolly useful for taking away the chlorine taste of purified water

TicosAn affectionate term referring to the native population of Costa Rica

Venturers (Aventureros)Participants in the Raleigh expedition. Aged 17 to 24, they come in three varieties: Host Country Venturers (from Costa Rica and Nicaragua), Partnership Venturers (positive young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in the UK who participate in Raleigh expeditions as part of a longer term development programme) and UK and International Fundraising Participants (who work hard to raise money to contribute towards the charities work and expenses in order to take part in the expedition)

Wash up (Revisión Final)The last few days of expedition, spent debriefing, returning equipment, performing skits, and most importantly enjoying the farewell party (tears alert)

Zero (Cero)A radio term that identifies the radio controller at Fieldbase. Fieldbase monitors the radios 24-7, listening out on three frequencies for calls from our satellite project sites. When the radio alarm sounds, we might answer something like this: “Hello unknown call sign, hello unknown call sign, this is Zero, this is zero, do you copy, OVER?”